US Discusses Withdrawal of Nuclear Weapons from Turkey: NYT

Last week, representatives from the US State Department and the Department of Energy discussed the possibility of withdrawing around 50 tactical nuclear weapons from the American military base at Incirlik, Turkey, according to The New York Times, citing its sources.

One of the interlocutors stated that these weapons are effectively being held as 'hostages' by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and their removal would signify the de facto end of American-Turkish cooperation.

"I think this is the first time a nuclear-armed country has literally been bombarded with artillery by American forces," said Jeffrey Lewis, an expert at the James Martin Center.